This week, Sam Woods, executive director of Insurance, was appointed Deputy Governor of the Bank of England for Prudential Regulation, and chief executive of the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) from 1st July – an appointment expected to be welcomed by the insurance industry.

HM Treasury has named Sam Woods as deputy governor for prudential regulation and chief executive of the Prudential Regulation Authority, effective 1 July.

Dutch-headquartered life group Aegon is selling two-thirds of its UK annuity book to insurer Rothesay Life.

The US Treasury has confirmed that it will appeal a federal court judgment that insurer MetLife is not a systemically important financial institutions (Sifi) and therefore should not face tougher regulatory oversight.

This week, Swiss Re, in a Sigma report, estimated that insured global losses from natural and man-made catastrophes came to $37bn last year, compared to a 10-year average of $62bn, representing 40% of total economic losses.

British annuity providers Just Retirement and Partnership Assurance have completed a £1.4bn ($2bn, €1.8bn) merger which saw it relaunch on the London Stock Exchange Monday as JRP Group.